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First Education Sector Development Program

Address by
Mr. Barry Hitchcock
Country Director
Mongolia Resident Mission
Asian Development Bank

20 March 2002

Ladies and gentleman, it is great pleasure for my to participate at the closing ceremony of First Education Sector Development Program. Few years ago, the Mongolian Government requested ADB to assist in reforming education sector and I ESDP was approved by ADB President in December 1996. Before approving the I ESDP, ADB helped the Mongolian Government to develop Education and Human Resource Master Plan, which became the basis for I ESDP. The main objective of the project was to improve the quality in secondary and higher education in Mongolia.

Mongolia has achieved the substantial results in terms of eliminating illiteracy, universal secondary education in the past. Some results were impressive. Gross Enrolment Rate (GER) in primary and secondary education reached 99 % by 1990, a remarkable achievement given the country's geographical and nomadic characteristics. Notable also was the equality of educational participation among all groups of population.

The decline of the state economy in the 1990s impacted negatively on the education system, particularly in early transitional years and especially in rural Mongolia. State educational expenditures were massively reduced, school facilities were deteriorated, and many were forced to close. Availability of learning materials dwindled, and teacher's salaries decreased markedly.

I ESDP aimed to restore fiscal viability by rationalizing educational facilities, reducing surplus staff, promoting private sector involvement. The investment project aimed to strengthen education management and education programs.

Key reforms during project implementation included: (I) 171 schools were restructured (merged with other schools or closed) to free up resources for remaining 700 schools, (ii) 5,000 staff were laid off and 3,900 positions removed through attrition, (iii) National Policy and Action Plan for Strengthening the TEVT sector finalized, and (iv) curriculum for primary and secondary schools newly developed.

The reforms have allowed resources to be freed up for increasing teacher remuneration. Salaries are typically over $100 monthly, well above the average for transition countries. The reduced school network is also now more affordable, but resources are still lacking for adequate operation and maintenance.

Implementation of the Project loan is rated "highly satisfactory". Key achievements include: (I) Forty-seven schools and educational facilities have been rehabilitated, (ii) Twenty-four textbooks/ teachers' guides published, (iii) 16,000 pedagogical and managerial staff trained, (iv) Capacity building support for MOSTEC and local government provided. (vi) Science education strengthened in schools and universities, (vii) A web-based information network (Erdemnet) established for universities and colleges and a library network established.

ESDP has been implemented in close cooperation with the Soros Foundation , who have contributed substantial technical assistance for ICT development, learning materials development and teacher training to supplement ADB inputs with considerable success.

We are very pleased to continue our assistance in education sector by implementing SEDP, which has been approved by ADB and then ratified by the Mongolian Parliament recently. Our new project in Mongolian Education Sector will improve or build new schools for over 100000 kindergarten, primary and secondary school children, including 2000 children with disabilities who will be brought into the system for the first time.

Our SEDP will also set new standards for cooperation between development partners in Mongolia, allowing more efficient use of external funds and for nationwide coverage in developing high quality education services for all, in line with the Mongolia's adherence to the Millenium Development Goals. We expect that the partnership between ADB. Japan and NDF will allow SEDP to benefit from their combined global experience, financial resources and technical expertise in education development.

In urban areas, we will aim to increase the number of school places in the poorest suburban areas, especially communities where families live in traditional gers. In rural areas, the project will provide dormitories so children from nomadic families can board at school.

As well as helping more children to go to schools, SEDP will ensure that they receive a high quality education. This will be achieved through investing in teacher training, providing modern textbooks, as well as modernizing science programs and integrating ICT into the school curriculum.

Finally, I would like to express my gratitude to the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science for successful implementation of I ESDP and continues efforts to improve quality of education for Mongolian young generation. I sincerely hope that ADB's new project in education sector will support the Mongolian Government to better address the issues impeding education sector development, and thereby, prove more effective in improving the quality of education in Mongolia.